Today’s telecom news includes announcements on BharatNet, India Reviews Policy, Kinetic Fiber Broadband, among others.
India Approves ₹3,189 Crore BharatNet Investment to Connect 12,769 Gram Panchayats in Telangana
India’s Department of Telecommunications announced on November 6 an agreement to implement the Amended BharatNet Programme across Telangana with approved financial support of ₹3,189 crore. The project covers 12,769 gram panchayats, including 10,787 Phase II locations, 1,946 Phase I locations requiring network upgrades and 36 newly created gram panchayats. Existing Phase I infrastructure will be upgraded from linear to ring topology to improve network resilience. The programme is expected to support approximately 300,000 rural fiber broadband connections through government subsidies. Implementation will involve Telangana Rural Internet Infrastructure Corporation, BSNL and T-Fiber. The agreement establishes the implementation framework, but construction schedules, additional fiber kilometers and completion dates were not disclosed.
India Reviews Policy and Infrastructure Bottlenecks to Accelerate Telecom Network Expansion
Union Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia chaired a meeting of the Internet Service Providers Stakeholder Advisory Committee on November 10 to address challenges affecting telecom infrastructure expansion in India. Discussions focused on right-of-way (RoW) permissions and energy-related issues that can delay network deployment and increase infrastructure costs. The meeting brought together industry stakeholders to examine policy measures and improve coordination between government agencies and telecom service providers. Scindia said the government remains committed to addressing industry concerns through coordinated policy action. The discussions are particularly relevant to expanding broadband connectivity, strengthening telecom infrastructure and accelerating network deployment across underserved areas.
Kinetic Expands Fiber Broadband to 162,000 Additional Locations Across 18 US States
Kinetic announced on November 10 that it expanded its fiber broadband network to 162,000 additional locations during the third quarter of 2026 across its 18-state operating footprint. The expansion included more than 26,000 locations in Georgia, 19,000 in Kentucky, 18,600 in Texas, 15,800 in North Carolina and 7,000 in Oklahoma. In Kentucky, the rollout covered more than 80 communities, while Georgia’s expansion reached more than 140 communities. Kinetic reported approximately 2.2 million fiber passings and 11.9 million fiber strand miles across its network. The newly activated infrastructure supports multi-gigabit broadband services. The company did not disclose the capital expenditure associated specifically with these quarterly additions.
